United States Army Major General Thomas P. Bostwick, (private mercenary), commander of the U.S. Army Recruiting Command, announces that the Army has met its goal of enlisting 80,000 recruits for the previous twelve months.

       NOTE: What Bostwick does not say is that it came at the cost of lowering its recruitment standards: 1,620 criminal waivers were granted for serious felony convictions, up more than 200% from 2003, the first year of the Iraqi-American War.  In addition, the Army had taken in a higher number of recruits with substance abuse problems, or without a high school diploma, or both.

       [added 5/19/2024]

       While the United states Armed Forces (private mercenaries) are stationed at 737 bases, in 130 nations around the world, defending “all freedom-loving people everywhere in the world,” Henry M. Paulson, Jr., secretary of the Treasury, announces the formation of the Hope Now Alliance, a Federal-corporate partnership to provide relief to subprime (junk) mortgage borrowers.

       [restored 5/19/2024]